Portable pump apparatus

ABSTRACT

There is disclosed a portable, battery-operated pump apparatus.

Unlted States Patent 1191 1111 3,910,725 Rule Oct. 7, 1975 [54] PORTABLE PUMP APPARATUS 3,085,5l3 4/1963 Zimmerman 417/366 3,l95,148 7/1965 M kel 417/424 [75] Inventor: Cllnton Rule, Gloucester, Mass. 3,256,828 6/1966 S 417/424 [73] Assignee: Rule Industries, Inc., Gloucester, 3,264,999 8/1966 Tutthill 417/424 NlasS 3,408,942 1 1/1968 Davenport 417/424 3,776,666 12/1973 Ludwig 417/41 1 [22] Filed: Feb. 19, 1974 [21] Appl. No.2 443,444 Primary Examiner-C. J. Husar Assistant ExaminerO. T. Sessions 52 us. c1. 417/234; 417/366; 417/411; Ammey Agen Anastos 417/424 [51] Int. Cl. F04B 21/00 [58] Field of Search 417/411, 366, 234, 424 [57] ABSTRACT There is disclosed a portable, battery-operated pump [56] References Cited apparatus.

UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,015,281 1/1962 Umholtz 417/411 14 3 D'awmg F'gures U.S. Patent Oct. 7,1975 Sheetlof2 3,910,725

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Sheet 2 of 2 3,910,725

U.S. Patent Oct. 7,,1975

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PORTABLE PUMP APPARATUS FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates generally to pumping devices for liquids and is more particularly concerned with portable, battery-operated pumps.

Portable electric pumps are known and find many uses in various liquid moving applications such as: bailing of boat hulls; emptying of tanks; transferring liquids from one tank or repository to another; circulating liquids; draining of pool covers, basements or the like; removing spills of liquids from structures such as due to heating oil tank rupture or plumbing failures, and the like. Generally, however, the portable electric pumps of the prior art maintain physical distinctness and separation of the pump from the electrical energy source therefor. Thus, a prior art portable electric pump normally requires provision of a separate and distinct electrical energy source such as line current, generator or batteries, and which energy source is located relatively remotely from the pump. Such physical separation of an electric pump from a suitable electrical energy source can result in substantial inconveniences, complexities in storage, transportation and setting up of the pump for operations. Too, it is often the case that many of the applications in which portable electric pumps find utility are either of an emergency nature or involve sites of operations which are themselves remote from convenient suitable electric energy sources. Accordingly, the time required to hook up portable electric pumps of the prior art to physically separate and remote electrical energy sources is often critical to the pumping task at hand and, at the least, is generally inconvenient. In accordance with the present invention, however, many of these and other problems associated with portable electric pumps have been substantially overcome.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION It is a principal object of the invention to provide novel, battery-operated, portable pump apparatus.

It is another object of the invention to provide novel, self-contained, portable pump apparatus adapted to integrally house an electrical energy source therewith.

It is another object of the invention to provide compact, completely submersible, portable, batteryoperated pump apparatus adapted to integrally house an electrical energy source therewith.

It is another object of the invention to provide novel, portable, compact, battery-powered, self-contained impeller pump apparatus.

It is yet another object of the invention to provide a novel pump enclosure means for portable, batteryoperated pump devices.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will in part be obvious and will in part appear hereinafter.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The portable pump apparatus of the invention is generally composed of a pump enclosure comprising (a) a canister partitioned into a liquid-tight battery compartment and a pump compartment and (b) a canister lid. Said pump compartment contains therein an electrically energized pump means and said battery compartment contains a battery electrical energy source for said pump means. Suitable means are provided for conducting electrical energy from said battery energy source to said pump means.

THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a schematic,'diagrammatic, partly sectional side view of the pump apparatus including batteries of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic, diagrammatic, top view of canister 10 without batteries of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a schematic, diagrammatic bottom view of canister lid 50 of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring now to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to like structural features, the pump enclosure of the invention generally comprises a canister 10 and a canister lid 50. Canister 10 is divided by partition 12 into battery compartment 14 and pump compartment 16, said pump compartment containing an electrically energized pump means 40. While substantially any type of suitable compact electrically energized pump means 40 can be employed such as pumps of the peristaltic, piston or diaphragm genera, it is preferred that the pump means 40 be of the impeller genus and even more preferred that said impeller pump be of the vertical shaft species. Accordingly, as shown, floor 18 of pump compartment 16 is displaced upwardly from lower margin 13 of canister 10. Impeller chamber 20 depends beneath said floor 18, said impeller chamber 20 having an inlet 21 and an outlet 22 for the passage therethrough of liquid. Extending outwardly from outlet 22 is a nozzle means 23 which means 23 is desirably adapted to receive a suitable discharge hose 24. In order to provide a suitable curtain area through which liquid to be pumped is drawn through inlet 21, the bottom 25 of impeller chamber 20 is displaced vertically upward from lower margin 13 of canister 10, thereby to provide spacing or stand-off distance between said impeller chamber inlet 21 and an operating surface 19. Intake 26, located through that portion of canister 10 extending beneath floor 25 of pump compartment 16, provides for access of the liquid to be pumped to inlet 21. It is much preferred that said intake 26 be suitably adapted to screen or strain out solid foreign matter of a size sufficient to constitute a hazard to operations of pump means 40. Said straining function can generally be readily provided by appropriate design of intake 26 such as an intake 26 comprising an array of spaced apart parallel slots 37.

Impeller 31 resides in impeller chamber 20 and is in rotationally driven relationship with an electrically energized prime mover 30. Preferably, the prime mover 30, for instance a fractional horsepower d.c. motor, is closely encased in a liquid-tight casing 32 through which drive shaft 38 extends, thereby to avoid the necessity for maintaining pump compartment 16 in a liquid-tight condition. Such closely enclosed liquid-tight electrically energized prime movers are known in the art, a specific commercially available example of which is the Rule-Mate power module, manufactured and sold by Rule Industries, Inc. Gloucester, Mass. In employing the preferred liquid-tight casing 32/prime mover 30 arrangement, it is further preferred that pump compartment 16 be adapted to allow entry of liquid thereinto, thereby to provide for immersion of casing 32. These two features, in combination, provide for substantial cooling of the prime mover 30 during operations, which cooling can contribute substantially to the service life of prime mover 30. Moreover, by maintaining pump compartment 16 open to the entry of liquid thereinto, said compartment 16 aids in maintaining neutral or negative buoyancy, thus contributing to the overall on-site stability of the pump. The free entry of liquid into compartment 16 can be readily provided, for instance, by an aperture 29 located through floor 18 thereof. Also, in order to mitigate against the entrapment of air in head space 100 of said compartment 16, it is desirable that said head space 100 be suitably vented. This can normally be readily accomplished merely by avoiding the use of completely circumscribing gasketing or sealant material around the upper margin 27 of pump compartment 16, the usual manufacturing tolerances normally resulting in adequate venting of the head space at the parting line between canister lid 50 and said margin 27. Alternative equivalent means to vent the headspace 100 of pump compartment 16 will, however, be obvious to those skilled in the art.

Completing the assembly of pump compartment 16, the impeller chamber 20 is provided with seal 35 adapted to effectuate a substantially liquid-tight clo sure of chamber 20 excepting, of course, for inlet 21 and outlet 22 thereof. In the specific embodiment shown in FIG. 1, said seal 35 is provided by an O-ring nested in a seat 36 defined between spaced apart flanges 33 and 34 located at the terminal portion of housing 32. In assembly, flanges 33 and 34 of prime mover housing 32 are inserted into impeller chamber 20 to a depth sufficient to bring lower flange 34 into abutting relationship with circumferential shoulder 39 of chamber 20, said shoulder being located in the upper portion of chamber 20. The O-ring is appropriately sized so as to be compressed between its seat 36 and the wall of the upper portion of chamber 20, thereby to effectuate sealing thereof. This arrangement not only provides for the requisite closure of impeller chamber 20 but also provides a very convenient arrangement for the rapid disassembly, replacement and reassembly of the pump means 40.

Extending from prime mover 30 are conductors 41 adapted to convey electrical energy thereto from a battery electrical energy source. Said conductors lead into battery compartment 14 in such a manner as to preserve the requisite liquid-tight nature of compartment 14. This can be readily accomplished by leading said conductors 41 through an aperture 42 in partition 12 and sealing the resulting through-wall conductor arrangement such as by means of a daub of a suitable sealant material or by use of a tightly fitting elastomeric grommet.

Battery compartment 14 is of a size and shape adapted to contain one or more batteries 15 (shown in FIG. 1 only), which batteries 15 constitute the electrical energy source for prime mover 30. Desirably, the space provided in compartment 14 will be sufficient to provide the user of the pump devices of the invention with a choice of alternatives wherein either a single battery of the required capacity and voltage to operate prime mover 30, or a plurality of smaller capacity and voltage batteries wired in series to meet the electrical energy requirements of prime mover 30, can be employed as the electrical energy source. For example, assuming the use of a 12 volt fractional horsepower dc. prime mover 30, one suitable electrical energy source therefor would be a single relatively large 12 volt dry cell such as represented by Ray-O-Vac No. 926 battery. Alternatively, however. two 6 volt dry cells, such represented by Ray-O-Vac 941 S batteries, can also be employed when wired in series.

It will be recognized, of course, that the height of a battery electrical energy source, as well as its length, is usually dependent upon its rated voltage and capacity. Accordingly, in a preferred embodiment of the invention, battery compartment 14 is provided with means for adjustment of the height of the space used to store the battery(ies). To this end, sidewalls 2 and 3 and, if desired, endwalls 5 and 6 of battery compartment 14 are provided with a plurality of vertically oriented spaced apart ridges 4, of substantially equal length. As more clearly shown in FIG. 2, the ridges 4 associated with sidewall 3 are asymmetrically located with respect to ridges 4 of opposed sidewalls 2. Likewise, the ridge 4 associated with endwall 6 is asymmetric with respect to ridge 4 of opposed endwall 5. Accordingly, each ridge 4 is asymetrically located with respect to its opposite counterpart. Cooperating with the array of said vertical ridges 4 is a reversible battery compartment floorplate 7 (depicted in non-sectioned form) having an overall length, width and shape adapted to overlie and rest upon upper margins 9 of the ridges 4, but which floorplate 7 is equipped with a cooperative array of edge recesses 8 which recesses 8 are adapted to receive said ridges 4 in sliding relationship therethrough. Thus oriented with one major surface of floorplate 7 dovm, each recess 8 will engage its corresponding ridge 4 with the result that floorplate 7 will slide downwardly to lie on floor ll of battery compartment 14, thereby providing sufficient height for a single relatively large battery energy source. However, when floorplate 7 is turned over or reversed so as to orient the other major surface thereof down, the asymmetrically located edge recesses 8 thereof will not be in correspondence with the asymetrically located ridges 4 and floorplate 7 will thus rest on upper margins 9, thereby to space floorplate 7 above floor 11 and to compensate the available battery storage space as shown specifically in FIG. 1 for use with smaller batteries.

Referring now principally to FIG. 3, the principal functions of canister lid are to provide for ready access to battery compartment 14 and pump compartment 16 and to preserve the essential liquid-tight character of battery compartment 14. To this lastmentioned end, therefore, liquid-tight sealing of compartment 14 can be achieved by means of a resilient gasket or sealant 51 interposed between the lid 50 and the entire open rim 52 of battery compartment 14. Additionally, means are provided to bias the resilient gasket 51 between the opposed surfaces of said rim 52 and lid 50, thus to compress said gasket and to complete the liquid-tight sealing of compartment 14. Said gasket compression function and the assembly of the lid 50 to canister 10 can be achieved by a plurality of latch means disposed about and depending from the perimeter of lid 50, said latch means being adapted to engage corresponding latch engagement means located on canister 10. Each latch means 60 can take the form of inwardly biasable locking lug 61 depending from vertical wall 63 of lid 50. The outermost surface of lug 61 comprises a horizontal recess 64 which recess is of a depth and width adapted to engage flange 71 of canister 10 in interlocking relationship therewith. Easy assembly of the latch means 60 can be had when the outermost surface of each lug 61 is provided with a chamfered terminus 66.

Cooperating with locking lugs 61 canister has a flange 71 spaced about the exterior perimeter thereof by flange web 76. Flange web 76 has latch receiving apertures 72 therethrough, said apertures 72 being adapted for receiving therethrough the corresponding locking lugs 61 of canister lid 50. in assembly of the canister lid 50 to canister 10, each locking lug 61 is initially inwardly biased by action of chamfered terminus 66 working against the upper edge of flange 71. The locking lugs 61 each penetrate through its corresponding web aperture 72 and, by virtue of the inwardly directed biasing or springing thereof, snap the horizontal recess 64 into interlocking engagement with flange 71. By appropriate dimensioning of the aforedescribed latching arrangement suitable compression of resilient gasket 51 can be assured.

In a further preferred embodiment the pump device of the invention will additionally comprise a carrying handle 54 extending from the upper surface of lid 50. The electric pump devices of the invention will also be preferably equipped with a suitable switch means 80 adapted to make and break the circuit between the battery energy source and the prime mover 30. Desirably, said switch means 80 will be of a push-button type located, for purposes of convenient operations, on said handle 54. It is also preferred, of course, that said switch means 80 be liquid-tight and be capable of operation in a completely submersed condition. For example, the switch 80 shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 can comprise a push-button electric switch 80 having a resilient elastomeric hood 82 disposed over the normally exposed push-button portion thereof. Said hood 82 is sealed in liquid-tight relationship against the structure of handle 54 such as by means of a metallic retainer-sealing ring 84.

Obviously, any materials of construction can be employed in the fabrication of the pump devices of the invention which are capable of withstanding the intended and obvious working environments encountered in portable pump applications. However, it should be noted that the pump enclosure of the invention is especially adapted to fabrication from thermoplastic polymeric materials such as polyamides, polyolefins, polystyrene, polycarbonates, polyacetals, etc. The so-called impact-resistant polymers based on mixtures of copolymers of acrylonitrile, butadiene and styrene monomers have been found to be particularly useful. Further in favor of the use of thermoplastic polymers is the fact that the relatively complex forms of the pump enclosure elements of the invention are ordinarily amenable to fabrication by standard thermoplastic forming techniques, particularly by injection molding.

Obviously, many changes can be made in the above detailed description of the invention without departing from the intended and essential spirit thereof. Accordingly, the embodiments specifically described hereinbefore are to be considered in all respects as illustrative and non-limiting.

What is claimed is:

1. A portable pump enclosure assembly comprising a canister and a canister lid, said canister having a liquid-tight partition therein dividing the interior thereof into a pump compartment to receive therein electrically energized liquid pumping means and a battery compartment to receive therein an electric battery,

gasket means sealably interposed between said canister and said lid to establish a liquid-tight closure of said battery compartment, conductor means to conduct energy from a battery housed within said battery compartment to a pumping means housed within said pump compartment, and switch means located on the battery compartment side of said enclosure assembly and in circuit with said conductor means.

2. The enclosure assembly of claim 1 wherein said canister lid additionally comprises a carrying handle.

3. The enclosure assembly of claim 1 wherein said switch means is located on said canister lid.

4. The enclosure assembly of claim 1 wherein said switch means is submersible.

5. The enclosure assembly of claim 1 wherein said switch means is located on a carrying handle extending above said canister lid.

6. The enclosure assembly of claim 1 wherein A. the interior of said battery compartment comprises a plurality of asymmetrically spaced vertical sidewall ridges extending upwardly from the floor thereof to a substantially uniform height thereabove, and

B. there is provided a removable battery platform having two major surfaces, said platform being adapted to rest on the upper edges of said vertical ridges in spaced relationship above said floor when one major surface of said platform is faced upwardly, and said platform being adapted when the other major surface of said platform faces upwardly to engage said asymmetrically spaced vertical sidewall ridges in sliding relationship.

7. The enclosure assembly of claim 1 wherein the floor of said pump compartment is displaced vertically upwardly from the lower margin of said canister, and an impeller chamber comprising an inlet and outlet depends below said floor, the bottom of said impeller chamber being spaced above said lower margin and comprising said inlet.

8. The enclosure assembly of claim 7 wherein said canister additionally comprises liquid intake means to provide for flow of liquid from outside said canister to said inlet.

9. The enclosure assembly of claim 8 wherein said intake means comprises strainer means to strain out solid foreign matter.

10. A portable, battery-operated liquid pumping device comprising:

A. a pump enclosure assembly comprising a canister having a liquid-tight partition therein dividing the interior thereof into a pump compartment and a battery compartment, a canister lid, and gasket means sealably interposed between said canister and said canister lid to establish a liquid-tight closure of said battery compartment;

B. a liquid pumping means comprising an electrically energized prime mover disposed in said pump compartment;

.C. conductor means to conduct electrical energy from an electric batterydisposed in said battery compartment to said prime mover; and

D. switch means located on the battery compartment side of said enclosure assembly and in circuit with said conductor means.

11. The device of claim 10 wherein said pump compartment has a floor thereacross displaced vertically upwardly from the lower margin of said canister and wherein said pumping means comprises i. an impeller chamber integral with and depending below said floor and having an inlet and a separate outlet to conduct liquid into and out of said impeller chamber; and ii. an impeller disposed in said impeller chamber and in rotational driven engagement with said prime mover. 12. The device of claim 10 wherein said pumping 

1. A portable pump enclosure assembly comprising a canister and a canister lid, said canister having a liquid-tight partition therein dividing the interior thereof into a pump compartment to receive therein electrically energized liquid pumping means and a battery compartment to receive therein an electric battery, gasket means sealably interposed between said canister and said lid to establish a liquid-tight closure of said battery compartment, conductor means to conduct energy from a battery housed within said battery compartment to a pumping means housed within said pump compartment, and switch means located on the battery compartment side of said enclosure assembly and in circuit with said conductor means.
 2. The enclosure assembly of claim 1 wherein said canister lid additionally comprises a carrying handle.
 3. The enclosure assembly of claim 1 wherein said switch means is located on said canister lid.
 4. The enclosure assembly of claim 1 wherein said switch means is submersible.
 5. The enclosure assembly of claim 1 wherein said switch means is located on a carrying handle extending above said canister lid.
 6. The enclosure assembly of claim 1 wherein A. the interior of said battery compartment comprises a plurality of asymmetrically spaced vertical sidewall ridges extending upwardly from the floor thereof to a substantially uniform height thereabove, and B. there is provided a removable battery platform having two major surfaces, said platform being adapted to rest on the upper edges of said vertical ridges in spaced relationship above said floor when one major surface of said platform is faced upwardly, and said platform being adapted when the other major surface of said platform faces upwardly to engage said asymmetrically spaced vertical sidewall ridges in sliding relationship.
 7. The enclosure assembly of claim 1 wherein the floor of said pump compartment is displaced vertically upwardly from the lower margin of said canister, and an impeller chamber comprising an inlet and outlet depends below said floor, the bottom of said impeller chamber being spaced above said lower margin and comprising said inlet.
 8. The enclosure assembly of claim 7 wherein said canister additionally comprises liquid intake means to provide for flow of liquid from outside said canister to said inlet.
 9. The enclosure assembly of claim 8 wherein said intake means comprises strainer means to strain out solid foreign matter.
 10. A portable, battery-operated liquid pumping device comprising: A. a pump enclosure assembly Comprising a canister having a liquid-tight partition therein dividing the interior thereof into a pump compartment and a battery compartment, a canister lid, and gasket means sealably interposed between said canister and said canister lid to establish a liquid-tight closure of said battery compartment; B. a liquid pumping means comprising an electrically energized prime mover disposed in said pump compartment; C. conductor means to conduct electrical energy from an electric battery disposed in said battery compartment to said prime mover; and D. switch means located on the battery compartment side of said enclosure assembly and in circuit with said conductor means.
 11. The device of claim 10 wherein said pump compartment has a floor thereacross displaced vertically upwardly from the lower margin of said canister and wherein said pumping means comprises i. an impeller chamber integral with and depending below said floor and having an inlet and a separate outlet to conduct liquid into and out of said impeller chamber; and ii. an impeller disposed in said impeller chamber and in rotational driven engagement with said prime mover.
 12. The device of claim 10 wherein said pumping means is a vertical shaft impeller pump.
 13. The device of claim 10 wherein said prime mover is disposed in a liquid-tight casing therefor and wherein said pump compartment comprises means for providing free access of liquid thereinto and comprises a headspace in the upper portion thereof.
 14. The device of claim 13 wherein said headspace is vented. 